The Reading Pharmacy
105 WOKINGHAM ROAD, READING, BERKSHIRE, RG6 1LNContact details and opening times
Patient ratings and reviews
Leave a review
Help others by sharing your thoughts and experiences about The Reading Pharmacy.
Reviews
-
Review titled great place
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 01 June 2023
I am new to this country. I am suffering from chronic inflammatory disease. Doctor sent my prescription to this pharmacy. When I went over there to collect my medicines, it was a que of 3 people waiting. What I saw was really strange to me because I was not expecting that kind of behavior from this country. There was a gentle man who was having a chat with one of the employee, girl was trying to explain him something like surgery has not responded to the request... She was having a polite tone. in reply to her explanation that man shouted at her saying I want it now... He literally shouted. In her defense she said, "I am so sorry sir, I will try to chase the surgery for you". Manager also stepped with the polite tone and apologizing, she explained the whole situation to that man but no he was adamant. He left pharmacy just like that. Even if there is something this is not the right way to talk to anyone at all. I was surprised at the good behavior of the team. First of all the team is really hard working I would say. When there is a change of ownership obviously there is a change which is very organic. I don't know about previous owners. But its been 3 months that I am collecting my prescription from that pharmacy and they never fail to amaze me. If I have any question pharmacist is there to answer all of the questions. Secondly since I am also on repeat medication so I can understand the whole procedure of placing a repeat request than waiting for the prescription and collecting it. Even if the system is new for the people of uk as well. They need to have a little bit patience that is my opinion. In short they are open to listening all my medical problem and trying to solve it to the best of their ability. Everyone greet you with a smile and positive attitude. I would recommend that to everyone.
Visited May 2023
The Reading Pharmacy has not yet replied.
-
Review titled Very under par pharmacy
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 22 April 2023
This pharmacy has gone downhill since change of owners after covid. No one picks up the phone and when some one does they seem stressed and unhelpful. Sorry to have to leave but need to go for a better service.
Visited April 2023
The Reading Pharmacy has not yet replied.
-
Review titled Don't bother
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Disgusted Patient - Posted on 01 February 2023
What happened to our lovely pharmacy?!? Where once you would go in, they'd greet you with a smile, a little chat if not busy, and you'd have your prescription with no fuss, has been replaced. Replaced with rudeness, contempt and a feeling of you've dared interrupt their day. Honestly. I've never met a more surly, ignorant bunch. I've also been queue jumped by someone coming in who they obviously know outside the pharmacy and had to wait whilst they're given the 5 star treatment. Nothing is too much trouble for these customers. When I finally get my turn, no apology for allowing the queue jumper, and when I pointed out how rude that was, I was told off! I'm elderly and don't need to be made to feel like an inconvenience. The rolling if eyes is a constant from them. I always felt welcome and respected before this bunch took over. I've now taken the advice of others and my surgery and switched to another local pharmacy, they are incredibly warm and polite and even deliver my medication to me on time. I honestly don't know how the current operator is getting away with such treatment of the majority of people who use this one. And yes, I agree, take a look at who wrote similar glowing reports all on or around the same date. Very telling.
Visited January 2023
The Reading Pharmacy has not yet replied.
-
Review titled First and Last time using
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Disappointed of Earley - Posted on 15 January 2023
I've recently moved to the area and on having my first prescription with the local GP I was told this pharmacy is "linked" with it and they send prescriptions there automatic for collection or sometimes they deliver. I hadn't read the reviews but wish I had. It took over a week and a half for my prescription to be ready. I called a number of times and either the call was drop called, or they just didn't answer. When I finally got through the lady who I spoke to was really not bothered and told me to call back later. I explained I had been trying to call for days and she said well try again. There was a total lack of friendliness of any type, she was just rude. I called my GP who said they had sent the prescription 4 days before so they said it should be ready I work full time so I couldn't just pop in during the daytime. That evening I tried to park nearby and it was impossible so I got soaked parking quite a distance in the rain. I stood and waited for ages to been seen, despite there being 3 women behind the counter, they were deep into a conversation and continued it, not once acknowledging I was there. In the end I had to actually say are you still open and one very grudgingly spoke to me, abruptly, asking for my name. She told me the prescription wasn't there. I told her it was as the surgery had confirmed. She looked again and said it wasn't ready and without even asking what I wanted, one of the others said it wasn't in stock and would take about 3 days to order. I asked why they hadn't told me that days before and she shrugged. At that point I asked for the prescription and the third woman said it had been sent to them so they weren't allowed. I insisted that this was rubbish and she handed it to me. Luckily, I was told about another pharmacy nearby and they couldn't have been more helpful, and I had my prescription filled in 5 minutes. I must say, looking at these reviews after being promoted by a neighbour, I can see it's a constant pattern, I think it's very telling that a number of very positive reviews all were posted on the same day (22/12/22) by people with similar sounding names. I would not be surprised if these were not from actual customers. I've now told the GP not to send anything here and was told I was the latest in a long line of patients who have given up, in fact I was the 6th one that fortnight. It definitely needs to be looked into whether they have any intention of treating all customers the same as clearly they can't at the moment and some are treated far better than others if the 22/12 reviews are true.
Visited January 2023
The Reading Pharmacy has not yet replied.
-
Review titled Poor Service
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 10 December 2022
Pharmacy really has gone downhill ever since it got sold by the former owner a few months ago. Inside the pharmacy expect to wait around 30-45 mins to collect your prescription due to inexperienced staff on the counter and poor management. Also delivery of medication is unsafe, posting medication through the letterbox at anti social times (9PM). Taking into consideration I have younger kids at home too who can easily pick it up and take the medication in the packet. Furthermore, I was once given a white box of medication which contained the wrong medication and patient information leaflet. Had I not checked I would’ve overdosed as it was double the strength. I returned the medication back to the pharmacy and received no apology or explanation as to why this has happened and was told to get another prescription from the drs despite them already having one for me. This pharmacy is not safe for patients any longer and should be shut down. They’ve done some work to the front of the shop to make it look nice but safety is more important than a good looking shop front. The pharmacy should review its internal processes and train both counter staff and pharmacists on patient service as it is clear they lack that. Do not get your prescription fulfilled here, go elsewhere or better yet online where they can deliver to your home and notify you accordingly every step of the way instead of this unsafe pharmacy which doesn’t have a clue what it is doing.
Visited December 2022
Review titled The Reading Pharmacy
Replied on 12 December 2022
Dear Patient, Thank you for the feedback. First of all, we are sorry to hear this feedback from you. We try our best to make sure everyone gets their medications as soon as possible. It generally takes us 5 to 10 mins to process and look through the prescription. However, during busy times it can take longer than usual, especially in December month when Christmas is coming up. Our delivery time is between 9am to 6pm and our delivery drivers will only deliver during those times. We don't deliver medications through a letterbox without consent or out of working hours unless it's being authorised by the on duty pharmacist. In addition, any returned medications should be notified to the pharmacist immediately, and a record will be made known on the system. We have a very robust system of acknowledging error, and protocols are in place to rectify any future untoward events. Once again, we are terribly sorry to hear this feedback from you. We will conduct a full investigation on this and take full responsibility for what happened to you. In order to conduct a full investigation, would you be able to contact us through info@readingpharmacy.co.uk, or you are most welcome to come into the pharmacy and we will trigger the investigation once we have spoken with you. We take our patient's safety very seriously. Please contact us regarding this as soon as possible so that we can help you out. Many thanks. With regards The Reading Pharmacy Team
-
Review titled Sadly lacking
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Village Voice - Posted on 03 January 2023
The village in general used to rely on this place when it was operated by Lloyds. Why on earth the new owners got rid of the previous managers I've no idea. Courtesy, politeness and manners seem to be unknown concepts. You are an inconvenience to them and they don't mind showing how much of an annoyance they find you. I've also witnessed their response to people who dare complain. If they get something wrong-and they frequently do- they will argue with you until you are half tempted to agree with them to get out of there. It's a huge inconvenience to not be able to want to use the only pharmacy nearby, but the annoyance of their attitudes and staff indifference outweighs the trek to a competitor. In times when we are being overwhelmed with online pharmacies, you would think this one would go for the small town, personal touch. I'm not asking for a red carpet to be rolled out when I pop in but a smile, or a kind word would be nice. Even basic manners. Also, you can complain to them directly, as they suggest in some of the replies here but it won't get you anywhere. Please, NHS, bring back the old team. We deserve a good level of service.
Visited December 2022
The Reading Pharmacy has not yet replied.
-
Review titled Given up using due to poor service
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 19 December 2022
Must agree with a fellow reviewer that the pharmacy has gone downhill rapidly since being taken over. We used to be able to rely on this pharmacy for great service, attentive staff and never had issues. In fact, such was the level of personal service when it was under a different owner and managers, that they knew our regular prescriptions enough that should the GP surgery mess one up, they would call them and get it sorted before I'd even found out about any mistakes. They recognised that as a parent carer I have enough to do. The same cannot be said of it since becoming Reading Pharmacy. Rude, aggressive and frankly incompetent staff and pharmacists. Takes over a week to get your prescription. Went from delivering to refusing to as they apparently have "concerns" on how many prescriptions they make up for my son. My son who has a range of illnesses that require regular meds. None of which are in the controlled category beloved by people who take them recreationally. The final straw was being shouted at when I merely asked why we had waited over a week again for vital meds. Despite there being about 6 in there at any one time, you can be standing for 10 minutes waiting for service whilst they finish their conversations. Dare to ask if you can be attended to and you are met with a look of contempt. They may have done it up but they should've started with decent staff. Will not be using again.
Visited December 2022
Review titled The Reading Pharmacy
Replied on 22 December 2022
Dear Patient, Thank you for your feedback. We are sorry to hear this feedback from you. Our team is always trying our best to support the local community, and we are still doing the delivery of medications for free for the local community in Reading. With regards to the prescription, upon requesting, it can take up to 2-3 days for the surgery to issue a new prescription, depending on the surgery's workload. Upon receiving the prescription, it can take up to 2 days time for the team to process the prescription, as the team has to make sure all the information on the prescription is correct before giving out the medications, and it also takes time to order the stock in as well. However, during busy period (e.g. Days before/after Bank Holidays, Christmas), the waiting time can be longer due to higher demand on workload and increased customer walk-ins. We also have an anti-discrimination policy in place, and we do not accept any rudeness towards the customers, just like how NHS has zero toleration policy towards unacceptable behaviour. We will conduct a full investigation on this and take full responsibility for what happened to you. In order for us to do so, please would you be able to contact us through info@readingpharmacy.co.uk with the staff details, and we will trigger the investigation once we have spoken with you. We take our patient's safety very seriously. Please contact us regarding this as soon as possible so that we can help you out. Many thanks. With regards, The Reading Pharmacy Team
-
Review titled Great and friendly services
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Deep Bhattacharya - Posted on 20 December 2022
I have been registered with this pharmacy over the past 3 years. This pharmacy was taken over recently this year by a new group of owners and as always with any new acquisitions and handover, I admit there was an initial logistical challenge which made me upset with their services as like many other local residents. I however must admit that the guys have made a consensus attempt to revive the services back to it old state. After a short period of hick up, I can certainly see their services to improve and continue improving over the period, which is what shows the positive intent from them. The pharmacist and the support staff are very helpful and friendly in nature and always make it a point to listen to your problems. We need to keep in mind that there has been a recent outbreak of some severe viral infections which impacted almost every household in the community and therefore it is imminent to have a huge influx in the number of customers visiting the pharmacy and thereby adding to the wait period. I am sure this would be better with time when the infections all around get a bit lower and also the fact that the guys in the pharmacy by then would be even better capable of handling such situations. This pharmacy has been a blessing for the local citizens over the years and I personally am very satisfied with their recent services after some of the initial challenges as described above. We need to be a bit more patient probably and not jump to conclusions immediately.
Visited December 2022
Review titled The Reading Pharmacy
Replied on 22 December 2022
Dear Mrs Bhattacharya, Our team is delighted with your positive feedback and would love to say thank you for your kind words. It is our pleasure to serve you, and we will continue to make the best effort to provide better patient care and support to the local community. At the same time, we are also truly grateful for your understanding, and we appreciate your patience with us during this transition period. Thanks again for your kind words and for being such a valued customer. Kind regards The Reading Pharmacy team
-
Review titled Great Staff - Empathy beyond expectation
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Shubhendu Das - Posted on 22 December 2022
Over the years you become accustomed to the service provided by other pharmacies. The delays, the excuses, and the lack of a personal feel. I snapped out of the normality of this expectation and moved to a better place. Reading Pharmacy is a place unlike any other. From the first time you are welcomed in, you feel like a long lost friend coming home and the amazing staff they have working provides personalized customer service that far exceeds any pharmacy. They never leave you stuck. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone. You won't be disappointed.
Visited December 2022
The Reading Pharmacy has not yet replied.
-
Review titled Smiling service, makes you feel welcome
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Abhi - Posted on 22 December 2022
This isn't the Pharmacy we normally go to, needed to collect medication on our way. Friendly service, first smile makes you feel welcome. I got attended to within around 10 minutes, but there is a lot of queue jumping by locals. It appears to keep things friendly no one is asked to follow a queue and it's left down to disciplined customers to establish the rule. One request if a token System can be established then the controversy of who was before whom would go away. Keep up with the Smile as normally when I go to a Pharmacy I'm a bit stressed and the smile makes you feel better.
Visited December 2022
The Reading Pharmacy has not yet replied.